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Changes in microbial populations and enzyme activity under phytoremediation in soil co-contaminated with heavy metals and antibiotics
Received:January 08, 2019  
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KeyWord:soil;Sedum plumbizincicola;heavy metals;antibiotics;microorganism;enzyme
Author NameAffiliationE-mail
ZHOU Xian-yong College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China  
LIU Hong-yan College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China hongyan.L@163.com 
LIU Yan-ping College of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China  
LIU Qing-dong College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China  
TU Yu College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China  
GU Xiao-feng College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China  
WU Long-hua Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Pollution Remediation, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China  
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Abstract:
      Irrigation with husbandry wastewater can lead to soil co-contamination by antibiotics and heavy metals and poses potential toxicological risks. In this study, we explored the effects of phytoremediation on biological activity in soils contaminated with heavy metals and antibiotics. Sedum plumbizincicola was used for remediation of the soil in a vegetable field in Guiyang that was co-contaminated. Changes in soil microbial populations and enzyme activities with phytoremediation and conventional cropping were examined. With S. plumbizincicola, the total amount of Zn, Cd, and Pb in the soil decreased by 13.2%, 17.8% and 12.2%; the concentration of tetracycline, oxytetracycline, and doxycycline decreased by 70.5%, 57.4%, and 76.0%, respectively; the concentration of sulfamethoxazole, sulfamonomethoxine, sulfametoxydiazine, ofloxacin, and enrofloxacin decreased between 35.8% and 62.3%; the biomass of soil bacteria and fungi increased by 18.8% and 73.1%, respectively; urease, catalase, and phosphatase activity increased by 16.5%, 65.4%, and 20.5%, respectively. In a normal celery (Apium graveolens L.) plantation field, the concentrations of heavy metals and antibiotics also decreased, and the microbial biomass and enzyme activity increased. Compared with S. plumbizincicola remediation, the observed changes were much smaller with celery. These results indicate that phytoremediation could decrease the concentrations of heavy metals and antibiotics, and increase the biodegradation of antibiotics, the microbial biomass, and enzyme activity, which improve the soil microenvironment.